A potential three-way deal between the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers quickly stalled soon after it was announced that Jimmy Butler intended to land with the Heat.
The Sixers were determined to get something out of his departure and rapidly engaged in a sign-and-trade, as the Mavs jumped in to facilitate matters.
According to Tim Cato of The Athletic, the trade flunked due to a case of mistaken identity:
Dallas had talked with Miami this week about trading for Kelly Olynyk and Derrick Jones Jr., because the Heat suspected it would acquire Jimmy Butler in free agency and needed to obtain cap space… Around the league, teams knew that Dallas had cap space and would be willing to absorb “bad” contracts for teams looking to acquire stars… At some point, Miami became convinced that it was sending Goran Dragic to Dallas, league sources told me and The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. The two sides have been arguing over how the miscommunication happened and which side is to blame. Salary cap experts have said that including Olynyk and Jones would not have been a legal trade under the CBA. It’s possible that Courtney Lee, whose trade has been rumored for weeks, would have been involved. Lee could still be traded, or his expiring contract worth $12 million could be waived under the stretch provision to provide Dallas about $8 million more in salary cap space.
This was no Dillon Brooks for Marshon Brooks type of gaffe, but a rather strange confusion as to who would take on Goran Dragic's contract.
It's likely that the Heat will look to unload Dragic to a new destination, not only out of respect for his career and contributions, but to make a blockbuster trade for Butler work before he's snatched away by another suitor.
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